Crash death blamed on lack of signs

The scene of a fatal accident on Hawke's Bay Expressway, SH2B, Napier.

A witness to a crash which yesterday claimed the life of a 7-year-old boy said he had "seen the crash coming for days" due to a "lack of signs" in the area.

The boy died after a nose-to-tail collision about 9.20am on the Hawke's Bay Expressway.

One witness spoken to by Hawke's Bay Today said he travelled the route every day and noticed a lot of drivers had to slam on their brakes when they came to the temporary 30km/h roadworks zone.

"There is just not enough warning."

The boy was in a car that hit another vehicle that had stopped in a line of traffic at a roadworks site on the Pandora Bridge, on the highway between the Prebensen Rd roundabout and Hawke's Bay Airport.

The victim was in the back seat of a Mazda that drove into the back of another car sitting in a line of stationary traffic.

He died at the scene.

His mother and younger sister were taken to Hawke's Bay Hospital. The girl has serious injuries.

The occupants of the car that was hit were also taken to hospital with various injuries. Both families are believed to be from Hawke's Bay.

A hospital spokeswoman said staff were treating a 5-year-old girl and a woman in her 30s, both with serious injuries.